The age of bias
The not-so-impartial moderator of the Palin-Biden debate
Kevin Burns
Issue date: 10/7/08 Section: Commentary
Thursday, Oct. 2, Governor Sarah Palin (R-Alas) faces off against Senator Joe Biden (D-Del) in the 2008 Vice Presidential Candidate Debate. The debate's moderator, PBS's Gwen Ifill, will soon be releasing a book called "The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama". When asked about potential bias, Ifill responded, "The proof is in the pudding. They can watch the debate tomorrow night and make their own decisions about whether or not I've done my job." Senator John McCain commented, "I think Gwen Ifill is a professional and I think she will do a completely objective job because she is a highly respected professional." I suspect McCain's optimism is merely wishful thinking, considering he later commented, "life isn't fair."
Ifill's publisher describes the book as a survey of the "American political landscape, shedding new light on the impact of Barack Obama's stunning presidential campaign and introducing the emerging young African American politicians forging a bold new path to political power." In a video discussing her book, Ifill lists four politicians on which her book focuses, all Democrats: Senator Barack Obama, Governor Deval Patrick, Congressman Artur Davis and Newark, NJ Mayor Cory Booker. If you search around enough, you learn that she also mentions Colin Powell, the former Secretary of State under George W. Bush. So now one can argue that the book does cover at least one Republican. You can argue, like DNC Chair Howard Dean, that the Republican Party is the "white" party. Perhaps there is some truth to those arguments. But let's face it: an unbiased journalist does not decide that we live in "the Age of Obama."
But, perhaps most importantly, there are serious ethical concerns. Ifill's book is set to release on inauguration day, Jan. 20, 2009. Quite obviously, the book will not be a bestseller if Obama loses in November. Ifill admitted that she did not tell the Commission on Presidential Debates about her upcoming book. Why would an utterly unbiased journalist not put everything on the table before she moderated a debate that could, potentially, decide the chief executive of the country?
As of this writing, the debate has not yet started. I cannot tell you if Ifill will ask biased questions. But one thing I can tell you: Ifill is biased. Even if she will not admit it to herself, even if she does everything in her power to be unbiased, I think it is safe to say that Ifill wants Obama to win, and deep down, she knows it.
Ifill's publisher describes the book as a survey of the "American political landscape, shedding new light on the impact of Barack Obama's stunning presidential campaign and introducing the emerging young African American politicians forging a bold new path to political power." In a video discussing her book, Ifill lists four politicians on which her book focuses, all Democrats: Senator Barack Obama, Governor Deval Patrick, Congressman Artur Davis and Newark, NJ Mayor Cory Booker. If you search around enough, you learn that she also mentions Colin Powell, the former Secretary of State under George W. Bush. So now one can argue that the book does cover at least one Republican. You can argue, like DNC Chair Howard Dean, that the Republican Party is the "white" party. Perhaps there is some truth to those arguments. But let's face it: an unbiased journalist does not decide that we live in "the Age of Obama."
But, perhaps most importantly, there are serious ethical concerns. Ifill's book is set to release on inauguration day, Jan. 20, 2009. Quite obviously, the book will not be a bestseller if Obama loses in November. Ifill admitted that she did not tell the Commission on Presidential Debates about her upcoming book. Why would an utterly unbiased journalist not put everything on the table before she moderated a debate that could, potentially, decide the chief executive of the country?
As of this writing, the debate has not yet started. I cannot tell you if Ifill will ask biased questions. But one thing I can tell you: Ifill is biased. Even if she will not admit it to herself, even if she does everything in her power to be unbiased, I think it is safe to say that Ifill wants Obama to win, and deep down, she knows it.
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